Fire safety expert Maureen O’Connor dies in Epping warehouse fire

An expert in fire safety has tragically died in a factory fire in Epping.

An expert in fire safety has died in a factory fire in Melbourne’s north.

Maureen O’Connor was living on the second floor of the factory that sells fire safety equipment when the blaze took hold in the early hours of Thursday.

Emergency services were called to the fire at Northern Fire Equipment Service in Epping about 3.45am on December 22.

Fire crews extinguished the blaze at the Dilop Drive factory and found the body of the owner of the factory inside.

Northern Fire Equipment Service sells fire safety equipment and specialises in providing training and preparation for fire emergencies.

A man at the scene, who asked not to be named, said he’d met Ms O’Connor through the building industry many years ago and that she was very “special”.

“I’d say she was one of my best friends,” he said.

“She was the only woman certified registered fire safety practitioner in Australia.

“It’s a horrible irony when you’re an expert in fire safety but you die in a fire.”

A man who worked at the factory, who also asked not to be named, Ms O’Connor had been living there.

“She was living on the second floor (of the factory) as she was in between homes … she smoked so maybe it was a cigarette,” he said.

“Hopefully (the police) find something.

“Yesterday we were laughing and joking about Christmas … now this.”